During building or repair tasks at construction sites or other workplaces, it is often necessary to provide temporary electrical power for operating a number of lights, tools or other devices at the same time when permanent power distribution facilities have not yet beer installed or are out of service because of damage or equipment failure. In some cases the temporary power distribution apparatus must be carried through or used in a confined space that does not afford much room for the apparatus. This is especially true in shipyards where electrical power is needed on board vessels that are being constructed or repaired. In this particular environment, access to a ship's interior compartments or hold may be by relatively small hatchways that limit the physical size or shape of power distribution equipment to be passed therethrough, especially when projecting power receptacles must be provided on such equipment because of user requirements. Also, the compartments or the work in progress therein could be of a size or nature which does not leave sufficient deck or floor space on which to lay the equipment when in use.
The subject invention solves the aforementioned problems by providing a portable and compact T-shaped cabinet that can house electrical power distribution components, including circuit breakers, for a number of protruding outlet receptacles which supply electricity to various external loads. This cabinet can be easily hoisted or lowered through small openings, such as round hatchways, and it also can be suspended from overhead structure if necessary when floor space is limited. While portable power distribution cabinets are known in the prior art (e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. 3,631,324 (Jones), U.S. Pat. No. 4,318,156 (Gallagher), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,390,926 (Hart)), they do not include the specific structure of the novel device described and claimed herein, which is particularly, although not exclusively, adapted for use on ships.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a portable power distribution cabinet having a novel configuration which permits its passage through relatively small openings.
Another primary object of the present invention is to provide a portable power distribution cabinet that allows a number of projecting outlet receptacles to be located thereon so as not to increase its cross-sectional dimensions.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a portable power distribution cabinet which can be suspended while in use without impairing accessibility to the outlet receptacles thereon or causing undesirable kinks in output power cables connected to these receptacles.
These and other objects of the present invention are generally achieved by providing a box member means for containing electrical distribution circuits and having a front wall, a back wall, side walls and end walls, with an electrical inlet receptacle located on one end wall of the box, together with a receptacle support member extending rearwardly from the box back wall and having a rear surface, side surfaces and end surfaces. The side-to-side width of the support member is substantially smaller than the side-to-side width of the box member, and the support member is preferably centered with respect to the side walls of the box member so as to form a "T" shape configuration. At least one electrical outlet receptacle is also located on each side surface of the support member, and each outlet receptacle extends outwardly and downwardly from its support side surface but does not protrude beyond a side wall of the box member. Moreover, the distance between the front wall of the box member and the rear surface of the support member is approximately equal to the side-to-side width of the box member.